County Urges Care Be Taken With Pet Gifts

December 08, 1985

The Cook County Department of Animal Control has cautioned pet givers to make sure adults or children receiving an animal for Christmas can properly care for it.

Patience and love are just not enough for the modern day animal. The pet`s shelter, food and medical care could amount to hundreds of dollars during the animal`s lifetime, with the most expensive costs incurred for vaccinations in the first year of life, said Cook County Department of Animal Care Administrator Dr. Robert Keough.

Each year, tens of thousands of pets are put to sleep because they are strays, unwanted and unable to be cared for permanently at animal shelters, Keough said.